Foxconn Plans to Create a Million Robot Army

CommanderFrank

CommanderFrank

Cat Can't Scratch It
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In a move to cut growing labor expenses , Foxconn will be replacing its human workers with robot counterparts over a three year period. From the present level of 10K robots, Foxconn will eventually build an army of one million robots to handle all of the menial tasks now performed by humans. Foxconn is infamous because of the high rate of suicide among its employee work force. Now if the new robot work force goes the suicide route, there is definitely a problem in the factories. :D
 
Maybe they weren't suicides, perhaps...our future robot overlords in the pre-production phase.
 
Awwww, now the Chinese can't even afford themselves.

Those weren't suicides, their services were terminated.
 
Big John said:
Awwww, now the Chinese can't even afford themselves.

Those weren't suicides, their services were terminated.
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I don't think the robots will cost less than the worker. Most likely the opposite.

I think this move is caused by the problems involved with the work force, pertaining to the suicides and the like.

This is the future of every company and every manufacturer, really.

The only reason this isn't done in the US, is because "creating jobs" is still on the agenda.

In truth, no one should have any of the jobs that are currently trying to be created.

But until every citizen is educated, it won't happen.
 
Even with slave labor there is a point where the loss of revenue from the output limitations of a human worker starts to dwarf whatever the cost of automating the production.would be.
 
Hopefully those unemployed because of this will benefit in life in some other ways, like being forced to look for better opportunities. (not making a judgment that replacing workers with robots is good or bad)
 
People seem to think we can have a utopia of sorts... where everyone is educated, has a great paying job and lives in the "burbs".

It can't happen, is feasibly unsustainable... and an argument could be made that the removal of blue collar jobs is one of the reasons for the predicament we are in.

If the united states doesn't produce anything, only has office (educated) and service jobs (the new blue collar) it will be unsustainable... Manufacturing is what I consider the blue chip segment of the labor market. Its like we all think that blue chips are for suckers and play the high earning risky game... Yet that area of the labor market was the rock base, that held the economy stable. We are loosing that.

Add in the fact that automation and computer systems are already reducing the need for labor, at least population is slowing down from a few decades ago.
 
If we know Foxconn, it won't be long till we hear this..."Hmm, it pulled it's own plug?".
 
Trackr said:
I don't think the robots will cost less than the worker. Most likely the opposite.

I think this move is caused by the problems involved with the work force, pertaining to the suicides and the like.

This is the future of every company and every manufacturer, really.

The only reason this isn't done in the US, is because "creating jobs" is still on the agenda.
Click to expand...

This is done in the United States, heavily. Automation is why productivity of American manufacturers continues to increase while headcounts decrease.
 
But the question is... where are they going to get the robots to build the robots? Oh, that's right, GET DA HUMMIES.
 
Wow, this makes me think of The Second Renaissance from The Animatrix.........
 
Terry Gou, founder and chairman of the company.

He made the announcement at a workers dance party on Friday night, and we’re pretty sure that was a damper on the festivities.

What a c*nt
 
cliche said:
Terry Gou, founder and chairman of the company.

He made the announcement at a workers dance party on Friday night, and we’re pretty sure that was a damper on the festivities.

What a c*nt
Click to expand...

I am glad I am not the only one who read that and thought what a jackass that guy was. :mad:
 
i think ima get me a Harley and get some guns strapped to my legs and ammo on my chest.

Renegade mode = ON(soon)
 
Interesting twist to this is that they don't have to replace workers with robots on a one to one ratio since that robot works 24/7 365 which could be three shifts of workers. They can get rid of the safety equipment, health benefits, workers calling in sick, etc...
 
dandirk said:
Add in the fact that automation and computer systems are already reducing the need for labor, at least population is slowing down from a few decades ago.
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It's scary to think about it but as more jobs get automated, the income gap that everyone talks about is only going to increase. Companies have to stay competitive so obviously they are going to try to find cheaper labor - why pay hundreds of people when you can pay a handful to automate something. And then you have IBM creating AI super computers to answer phones... The end is near! ;)

I think I remember Obama commenting about automation taking away from jobs once but he used it more as an excuse for the craphole economy than something that will need to be addressed in the future.
 
if this is true, i wonder how long it will take to break even with the cost of the robots
 
Sure the income gap may widen but the overall wealth is much higher. And even the poorest of the poor will be "richer" because of automation! It is good for humanity by any measure!
 
They must have started building them 18 years ago unless China allows employment of underage robots.
And some people will probably tell us there's nothing in the Bible about marriage between 2 robots or between man and robot...
 
brandinb said:
Sure the income gap may widen but the overall wealth is much higher. And even the poorest of the poor will be "richer" because of automation! It is good for humanity by any measure!
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I can only hope you're right!
 
brandinb said:
Sure the income gap may widen but the overall wealth is much higher. And even the poorest of the poor will be "richer" because of automation! It is good for humanity by any measure!
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Uh, no. Reducing the workforce isn't necessarily good (especially for the workers being laid off). Unless they have the opportunity to get a different job with similar benefits or pursue further education, they'll be screwed.

Chimel said:
They must have started building them 18 years ago unless China allows employment of underage robots.
And some people will probably tell us there's nothing in the Bible about marriage between 2 robots or between man and robot...
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:D
 
If the robots are made in China then they will consistently turn out product that breaks right out of the box.
 
Term-X said:
But the question is... where are they going to get the robots to build the robots? Oh, that's right, GET DA HUMMIES.
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Nope, already done: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lights_out_(manufacturing)
FANUC, the Japanese robotics company, has been operating a "lights out" factory for robots since 2001.[5] "Robots are building other robots at a rate of about 50 per 24-hour shift and can run unsupervised for as long as 30 days at a time. "Not only is it lights-out," says Fanuc vice president Gary Zywiol, "we turn off the air conditioning and heat too."
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...all kidding aside, it is much harder for your workers to jump off the roof when they are bolted to the floor.
 
Still need people to service the robots, only smaller, but expensive and more educated workforce.
 
Trackr said:
I don't think the robots will cost less than the worker. Most likely the opposite.

I think this move is caused by the problems involved with the work force, pertaining to the suicides and the like.

This is the future of every company and every manufacturer, really.

The only reason this isn't done in the US, is because "creating jobs" is still on the agenda.

In truth, no one should have any of the jobs that are currently trying to be created.

But until every citizen is educated, it won't happen.
Click to expand...

And that needed education will never happen until the public(government) school system is either abolished or until they start firing teachers who either don't do their job (spewing liberal propaganda and then giving everybody a passing grade unless they disagree with the "teacher) or unable to do their job (teachers who really can't teach effectively).

But with the teachers unions that will most likely never happen.

Unions FTW! (this line is complete sarcasm)
 
Jobs are getting increasingly automated. When robots replace nearly every job (except maybe "executive" and "robot repairman") I wonder if there will still be calling unemployed people "lazy bastards who need to get a job and stop trying to steal rich people's money" when there are no jobs.

As our automation gets more advanced, there will be less to do. New industries will be created and some people will create new jobs, but there will be an overall net loss of employed people.
 
Trackr said:
I don't think the robots will cost less than the worker. Most likely the opposite.
Click to expand...
Robots cost a lot less than a human worker over time:
- robots can run continuously with defined scheduled maintenance
- robots deliver consistent productivity
- robots deliver consistent and superior quality/precision
- robots don't incur the HR cost of turn-over
- robots don't unionize (which is only a matter of time for humans in China)
- <insert countless other cost savings here>

Most importantly, robots come at a fixed known cost while labor cost in emerging markets is a huge unknown. In China workers quit their jobs on a whim if the factory one block down offers just a little more money. Seniority is meaningless and thus no one tries to stick around.

Woe is me once the Chinese are not actually cheap labor anymore.
 
Wasn't it found that the rate of suicide in Foxconn workers was less than the general pop?

But we can all ignore that because saying they all kill themselves is... funnier?
 
If the chinese are automating the production then so can we which opens the door to bring manufacturing back to the US.
 
brink668 said:
If everyone company did that no one would be able to buy anything!
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Err...news flash, have you looked at the United States lately, Apple has more money than the bloody federal reserve, people aren't buying anything here, I'm barely able to keep the money I earn due to debt, rent, and bills, I haven't got room for sudden expenses like car problems or vet bills.
 
They'll end up with a bunch of robots like Marvin, from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and end up with a higher suicide rate.
 
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